Sitio Zapatera residents cooperating, following COVID-19 measures

Police Colonel Josefino Ligan, chief of Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) together with Police Major Juanito Alaras of Mabolo Police station, conduct a foot patrol inside Sitio Zapatera, Barrio Luz, which was placed under a lockdown on Sunday, April 12, 2020 due to the two positive cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the area| Photo courtesy of CCPO

CEBU CITY, Philippines — A day after being placed in a lockdown due to the new positive cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), residents in Sitio Zapatera in Barangay Luz in Cebu City have started to become more cooperative and more aware of what to do to protect themselves from the virus.

This was the observation of Police Colonel Josefino Ligan, chief of the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO), after conducting a patrol in the area this morning, April 13, 2020.

LOOK: CCPO Police Colonel Josefino Ligan conducts a foot patrol at Sitio Zapatera

According to Ligan, the residents were putting up no entry warning signs for those non-residents outside their houses and in the interior portions of their area to help spread the message of the isolation going on in their sitio.

Ligan said that the residents, who were able to go out to buy basic necessities were also the ones reminding the other residents on the protective equipment they should be wearing when they would be outside of their homes.

Read more: More police, rice aid for locked down Sitio Zapatera

But the most significant part according to Ligan was that those houses with confirmed cases abided with the rules and no longer went out from their homes since the lockdown.

“Naobserbahan namo nga mga tawo is very cooperative na,” said Ligan.

(We have observed that the people have been very cooperative.)

Read more: 9K individuals in Barrio Luz’ sitio placed under lockdown

Unlike previous reports where the barangay officials complained about the uncooperative public in Sitio Zapatera, Ligan said they were glad to see that most of the residents were indoors this morning.

Ligan said that tight security would continue until Thursday, April 16, in time for the City Health to arrive and transfer the patients who tested positive to the prepared isolation facility.

As of this time, Ligan said that there were more than 10 CCPO policemen augmented in the area.

Six of these policemen were tasked to supervise the entrance and entry points while the other were tasked to conduct the foot patrol in the area.

Ligan assured that all the police personnel in the area were complete with personal protective equipment (PPE) which include masks, face shields, and suits.

He also said that these policemen deployed to secure Sitio Zapatera would also undergo  complete decontamination every after shift./dbs